Device for operating and locking prison-doors.



C. SCHOENF LD. DEVICE FOR OPERATING AND LOOKING PRISON DOORS.

APPUCATION FILED SEPT. 13. ms.

1,258,260. Patent/ed Mar. 5,1918.

3 SHEETFSHEET gq/MW i Que M4213 Wilma/w -C. SCHOENFELD.

DEVICE FOR OPERATING AND LOCKING PRISON'DOORS.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 13. I9I5. 1,258,260. Patented Mar. 5, 1918. I a SNEETS-SIIEET 2.

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elk/town C. SCHOENFELD. DEVlCE FOR OPERATING AND LOCKING PRISON nouns. APPUCATION FILED SEPT. 13. 1915.

1,258,260. Patented Mar. 5,1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- CHARLES SCHOENFELD, 0F CANTON, OHIO.

DEVICE FOR OPERATING AND LOCKING PRISON-DOORS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 5, 1918.

Application filed September 13, 1915. Serial No. 50,356. 7

To all whom. it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES SCHOENFELD, a citizen of the United States, residing at Canton, in the county of Stark and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Device for Operating and Looking Prison- Doors, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to devices for operating and locking prison doors and has more especial reference to a device by which all of the cell doors in one corridor or series or any one desired door in said series may be opened or closed by mechanism operated at one extremity of said corridor or series of cells.

The object of the present invention is to provide means to open and close prison doors by mechanism intermediate the doors and the end or side of a prison structure or cell.

Another object is to provide means whereb a series of doors may be opened and cl bsed by mechanism operated from one extremity of said series.

A still further object is to provide means whereby any desired door of a series can be opened or closed without disturbing or interfering with the remaining doors in the series.

With these objects in view the invention consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts, hereinafter described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that various changes in the form, proportions, size and minor details of construction may be made within the scope of the appended claims, without departin from the spirit or sacrificing any of the a vantages of the invention.

11 the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation showing two cells with the doors closed, illustrating the mechanism for operating the doors.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation upon an enlarged scale showing one cell with the door 0 en.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the end cell in the series showing the levers which control the door actuating mechanism.

Fig. 4 is a section on an enlarged scale on the line 4-4, Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a section on line 55, of Fig. 1, made on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 6 is a detail perspective view of the vertical locking bar and the locking bolts carried by the door.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view showin the mechanism set to open the end cell 0 the series.

Similar numerals of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout all the figures of the drawings.

The resent invention has reference to mechanism adapted to open and close prison doors and is arranged to be inclosed in a casing located above the cell doors and controlled by levers located upon the outer wall of the end cell of the series. In the drawings the numeral 1 indicates generally the end cell of a series of cells and the numeral 2 the next adjacent cell in the series, the front walls of said cells being provided with the usual bars 3, which are reinforced at intervals by the cross bars 4. A suitable door we is formed in each cell and provided with a cor casing comprising an upright 5 of angle form provided with the relatively narrow flange 6, located at one side of the door way, and a door jamb located at the other side of said door way and comprising a relatively wide late 7 connected to the outer edge of which is the angle bar 8. A door is slidably mounted upon each cell adapted to close said door way, said door being supported from above as will be hereinafter de- I scribed.

The lower wall 9 of the casing within which is mounted the mechanism which operates the doors is mounted upon the upper extremities of the bars 3 and said wall is provided at its rear edge with an up-turned flange 10 to which is connected the rear wall 11 of the casing, the top wall 12 being supported thereon as shown. A track 13 is mounted upon the bottom plate 9 of the easing above described, said track being for the purpose of supporting the doors as will be hereinafter described.

Each of the doors comprises a series of vertical bars 14 connected together at intervals by means of cross bars 15, a vertical end member 16 being provided at one edge of the door to contact with the jamb 7 and a vertical angle bar 17 being provided at the opposite edge of the door, said angle bar being provided with the in-turned relatively narrow flange. 18 arranged to be seated behind the flange 6 of the upright 5 as best shown in Fig. 5 of the drawings when the door is in the closed position. Connected to the upper extremities of the bars 14 of each door is the horizontally disposed flan e 19 of the plate 20 which plate is slidably mounted in the slot 21 formed in the bottom u all 9 of the casing. A pair of rollers 22 are rotatably mounted upon each plate 20, said rollers being adapted to travel upon the track 13, thus slidably supporting the door upon said track.

T o the upper extremity of each of the plates 20, upon which the door is carried, is attached in any convenient and well known manner the housing 23, within which housing is slidably mounted the reciprocating coupling bolt 24, said bolt being provided at a point near its lower extremity with a pin 25 upon which is mounted an anti-friction roller 26.

Mounted upon the lower plate 9, and adjacent each door is a relatively short angle bar 27. provided with the vertically disposed flange 28 and slidably mounted u on each of said angle bars is a coupling ar 29, said coupling bar being provided with slots 30, which receive pins 31 carried by the flange 28 for the purpose of limiting the movement of the coupling bar with reference to the angle bar. A block 32 is mounted upon each of the coupling bars 29, said block being preferably provided with an anti-friction roller 33 arranged to travel upon the horizontally disposed flange of the angle bar 27. A pair of spaced upwardly disposed lugs 34 and are provided upon the upper edge of the block 32 each of said lugs being provided with a rounded outer surface.

\Vithin the casing, above the coupling bars is located the setting bar 36, said bar extending the entire length of the series of cell doors arranged to be operated by said mechanism. For the purpose of holding the setting bar in proper relative position brackets 37 are provided at intervals within the casing, a pair of anti-friction rollers 38 being mounted within said brackets. the setting bar 36 being arranged to travel between each pair of rollers. Pivotally mounted upon the setting bar at a point adjacent each block 32 is a gravity pawl 39, said pawls being arranged to engage the lugs 34 and 35 upon the blocks 32 for the purpose of opening or closing all of the cell doors simultaneously as will be hereinafter described.

Pivotally mounted upon the bar 36 and spaced a slight distance to the right of the pawl 39 which operates the door of the cell 1 is a similar pawl 40 arranged to engage the lugs upon the adjacent block 32 when it is desired to open or close the door of the cell 1 independently of the remaining doors. A similar. pawl 41 is spaced a slightly greater distance to the right of the pawl 39, which operates the door of the cell 2, said pawl by means of which the cell door can be operated simultaneously with the remain- ,ing cells in the series and with a second pawl by means of which the cell door can be operated independently of the other doors of the series.

Each coupling bar 29 is provided with a recess 42 provided with an inclined wall 43, said recess being arranged to receive the anti-friction roller 26 of the adjacent coupling bolt 24 when the door is in the closed and locked position as shown in Fig. 1. Located near the opposite extremity of each coupling bar is a similar notch 44 arranged to receive the friction roller of the coupling bolt when the door is in the open position, said notch 44 being provided with an oppositely inclined wall 45.

A recess 46 similar to the recess 42 and provided with an inclined portion 47 is provided in each of the coupling bars 29 at a point adjacent the left hand extremity thereof, said recess being for the purpose of re ceiving the anti-friction rolier 48 which is rotatably mounted upon. a pin a9 carried upon the upper extremity of the locking bar 50, said locking bar being slidably mounted for "ertical reciprocation upon the rear face of the jamb member 7, keepers 51 being provided upon said jamb member for the purpose of guiding said locking bar. The locking bar is provided intermediate its extremities with an elongated slot 51. adapted to receive the head of the notched bolt 52 which is carried upon the door and the lower extremity of said locking bar is beveled as at 53 and adapted to be seated within the notch 54 of the bolt 55 which is carried near the lower extremity of the door, said locking bar being located with reference to the bolts 52 and 55 as shown in Fig. 6 when the door is in the locked position.

Brackets 56 are mounted at intervals upon the back plate 11 of the casing, each of said brackets carrying a pair of rollers 57, said rollers spaced from each other and adapted to receive therebetween the door actuating bar 58; said bar being of a length substantially the same as the length of the series; of cells. A link 59 is pivotally connected at 60 to a point near one extremity of the door actuating bar, said link being pivotally connected at its other extremity to the lever 61, said lever being pivoted at 62 upon a bracket 63 mounted upon the end wall 6 of the cell 1, a pinion 65 being rigidly mounted upon the pivoted extremity of said lever and arranged to rotate as said lever is moved. A rack bar 66 engages said pinion and a similar inion 67 mounted upon a bracket 68 carried by the wall 64, an operating lever 69 being operatively connected to the pinion 67. Suitable rollers 70 and 71 are'mounted upon the brackets 63 and 68 respectively for the purpose of engaging the rack bar 66 and holding it in engagement with the pinions 65 and (37. The door operating bar 58 is provided with notches 72 adapted to receive the lock bolts 24 as will be hereinafter described.

A link 73 is pivotally connected to the setting bar 36 at a point near one extremity thereof, said link being pivotally connected at its other extremity to the bell crank lever 74 which lever is pivoted at 75 upon a bracket 76 mounted uponthe wall 64, an operating handle 77 being provided upon said bell crank lever. A graduated segment 78 is mounted upon the wall 64 adjacent the operating handle 77 of the bell crank lever.

The parts are in the normal position as shown in Fig. 1 and when it is desired to open the door of the cell 1 independently of the remaining doors the operating handle 77 of the bell crank lever 74 is grasped and pulled outwardly, thereby moving the setting bar a suflicient distance to carry the pawl 40 beyond the lug 35. The bell crank lever is then moved in the opposite direction a sutlicient distance to allow the pawl 40 to ride over the lug and drop into position engaging said lug as shown in Fig. 1. It will, of course, be understood that the segment 78 is graduated, properly indicating the different points at which the operating handle of the bell crank lever should be stopped for the different operations. The bell crank lever is then moved in the opposite direction, the pawl 40 thereon being the only one in engagement with the blocks 32, the coupling bar 2-9 of the cell 1 being moved the distance of the length of the slots 30 therein. As this movement takes place the roller 48 upon the upper extremity of the locking bar 50 rides up the inclinet edge 47 of the recess 46, thereby raising the locking bar out of engagement with the door bolts 52 and 55. At the same time the roller 26 upon the coupling bolt 24 rides up the inclined edge 43 of the recess 42, thus shooting the coupling bolt 24 into the recess 72 in the door actuating bar 58. As the angle iron 28 is of a length substantially the same as the distance from the center of the notch 42 to the center of the notch 44, and as the slots 30 are of the same length as each of said notches the coupling bar will have been moved a sufficient distance to bring the notch 42 to register with the left hand end portion of the angle iron while the notch 44 will have been moved beyond the right hand end of the angle iron. Thus a continuous track will be formed for the roller 26 allowing said roller to be moved past the notch 42. The operating lever 69 is then moved into the position shown in Fig. 2, moving the door actuating bar therewith and as the coupling bolt 24 of the door upon the cell 1 is at this time in engagement with the accompanying notch 72 in said door actuating bar, the door of the cell 1 will be moved therewith, the traveling wheels upon said door traveling upon the track 13. As the roller 26 registers with the notch 44 it will drop into said notch, thereby withdrawing the bolt 24 from the notch 72 in the door actuating bar. The door being thus disconn'ected from the door actuating bar no movement of the door actuating bar will effect the door. When it is desired to close the door to the cell 1 again, the handle 77 of the bell crank lever 74 is moved into a position to press the pawl 40 into engagement with the lug 34 as shown in Fig. 2 and then by reversing the movement of the bell crank lever the coupling bar will be moved back into the natural position, the bolt 24 again engaging the door actuating bar. The operating lever 69 is then moved back into the position shown in Fig. 1 bringing the door back into the closed position and as the roller 26 registers with the notch 42 the bolt 24 will be withdrawn from engagement with the door actuating bar. At the same time the roller 48 will register with the notch 46 dropping the locking bar 50 into the posi tion shown in Fig. 6, said locking bar engaging the bolts 52 and 55, thus locking the door of the cell 1. If it is desired to open the door of the cell 2 independently of any other doors the setting bar will first be operated to bring the pawl 41 into engagement with the accompanying block 32 in the same manner as above described when the door may be opened in the usual manner. If it is desired to open all of the doors at the same time the setting bar will be operated,

bringing the pawls 39 of each door into engagement with the accompanying blocks 32 when the doors may all be operated by one movement of the operating lever 69.

I claim:

1. A structure of the dharacter described comprising, in combination, a lurality of slidable doors, a door coupling olt carried by each of said doors, a roller carried upon each of said coupling bolts, a door actuatin bar arranged above said bolts and provided with sockets adapted to receive said bolts when the bolts are in the raised position, a fixed bar arranged beneath each of said bolts, the roller upon said bolts being arranged to rest upon said fixed bars holding the bolts in the raised position at all points except in the fully open and fully closed positions of the door, a coupling bar longitudinally slidably connected to each of said fixed bars, each of said coupling bars provided with a pair of oppositely isposed beveled notches in its upper edge, one of said notches arranged to receive the roller of the adjacent coupling bolt when the door is in the fully open position and the other notch arranged to receive said roller when the door is in the fully closed position, a reciprocating setting bar located adjacent said coupling bars, a series of pawls carried by said setting bar and arranged to engage all of said coupling bars, simultaneously, and a pawl spaced from each of said first named pawls said second named pawls, being so located'that when one of said second named pawls is in engagement with the accompanying coupling bar all of the remaining pawls will be out of engagement with the remaining coupling bars.

2. In a structure of the character described, in combination with a slidable door, a vertical reciprocating bolt connected to said door, a door actuating bar arranged above said bolt and provided with a socket adapted to receive said bolt when the same is in the raised position, a coupling bar arranged beneath said bolt, said coupling bar provided with notches, said bolt adapted for contact with the upper edge of said coupling bar, said notches so disposed as to permit said bolt to drop into said notches when the door is in the fully opened and fully closed positions, a setting bar located adjacent said coupling bar, means for actuating said setting bar and means upon said setting bar for engaging said coupling bar.

3. In a structure of the character described, in combination with a slidable door, a coupling bolt connected to said door, a door actuating bar arranged above said bolt and provided with a socket adapted to receive said bolt when the same is in the raised position, a coupling bar arranged beneath said bolt and provided with spaced sockets adapted to maintain said bolt in its raised position at all times, except in the fully opened and fully closed positions of said door, a pair of spaced lugs provided upon said coupling bar, a setting bar located adj acent said coupling bar, means for actuating said setting bar, and a locking pawl mounted upon said setting bar and arranged to engage said spaced lugs for longitudinally actuating the coupling bar to couple and uncouple said door with relation to said door actuating bar.

4. In a structure of the character described, in combination with a slidable door, a vertically reciprocating bolt connected to said door, a door actuating bar arran ed above said bolt and provided with a soc et adapted to receive said bolt when the same is in the raised position, fixed bolt sustaining in the fully open and fully closed means beneath said bolt and adapted to maintain said bolt in raised position at all times except in the fully open and fully closed position of said door, movable means for raising said bolt when said door is in the fully open and fully closed position and a reciprocating setting bar arranged to be detachably connected to said movable means.

5. A structure of the character described comprising, in combination, a plurality of slidable doors, a door coupling bolt carried by each of said doors, a door actuating bar arranged above said bolts and provided with sockets adapted to receive said bolts when the bolts are in the raised position, a fixed bar arranged beneath each of said bolts and adapted to maintain said bolt in its raised position at all points except in the fully open and fully closed positions of the door, a coupling bar engaging each of said bolts, said coupling bars adapted for longitudinal movement with relation to said fixed bars, and adapted to raise said bolts when the doors are in the fully open and fully closed positions, and a reciprocating setting bar arranged to engage any desired one of said coupling bars or all of said coupling bars simultaneously.

6. A structure of the character described comprising, in combination, a plurality of slidable doors, a door coupling bolt carried by each of said doors, a door actuating bar arranged above said bolts and provided with sockets adapted to receive said bolts, when the bolts are in the raised position, a fixed bar arranged beneath each of said bolts and adapted to maintain said bolts in their raised position, at all points except in the fully open and fully closed positions of the door, a longitudinally slidable coupling bar en gaging each of said bolts, said coupling bars adapted for longitudinal movement with relation to said fixed bars and adapted to raise said bolts when the doors are on tions, a rec1procating setting bar locate adjacent said coupling bars, a series of pawls carried by said setting bar and arranged to engage all of said coupling bars simultaneously, and a pawl spaced from each of said first named pawls, said second named pawls being so located that when one of said second named pawls is in engagement with the accompanying coupling bar all of the remaining pawls will be out of engagement with the remaining coupling bars.

In testimony that I claim the above, I have hereunto subscribed my name.

CHARLES SCHOENFELD. 

